Genius, born of desperation

After dinner tonight, I ran the boys' bath, just like always. Shane usually loves the bath, but tonight he wasn't interested, and wanted out right away. I got him out and got his diaper and pajamas on while Weston stayed in the tub and played. I was doing dishes and Lloyd was selfishly doing something totally unrelated to parenting or housekeeping, when Weston shrieked. We ran into the bathroom, to find Shane playing happily in the tub, fully dressed.

At first I was pretty annoyed, because it is hard work to get Shane in a diaper and sleeper. He runs around in circles, laughing giddily, until I tackle him and pin him down. Then he howls and twists around, trying to get loose, and yanks at whatever I'm trying to get on him. Usually I just let him run around naked because it's not worth the hassle, but he has to have a diaper and pajamas for bed, right?

But then, I saw the possibilities: throw in a pile of dirty clothes, swish it around a little, and you have a clean kid and clean clothes all in one fell swoop. But it gets better: add some dishes and save yourself running the dishwasher. As an added bonus, they act like beaters (or a laundry ball) on the clothes and kid, for even more cleanliness! The more I think about it, the more I like it. It's even better than my SCRUB idea.

And now that my brain is really churning, I'm starting to rethink that old wives tale about how the baby has to wear diapers and pajamas to bed. All I really need is a way to keep the pee off the bed. I'm picturing something like those little sleep dresses that cinch at the bottom that you put on teeny babies, only made out of plastic or rubber. Or, even better, a hefty bag with eye, nose and mouth holes cut out. All I would have to do is get close enough to throw it over his head, and tackle him just long enough to tie the bottom up good. It would be sort of like the calf-roping event in the rodeo. I have always wanted to be a rodeo star, as long as I don't have to iron my jeans.